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Maculopathy following exposure to visible and infrared radiation from a laser pointer: a clinical case study

  • Clinical Case Report
  • Published:
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Abstract

Purpose

Laser pointer devices have become increasingly available in recent years, and their misuse has caused a number of ocular injuries. Online distribution channels permit trade in devices which may not conform to international standards in terms of their output power and spectral content. We present a case study of ocular injury caused by one such device.

Methods

The patient was examined approximately 9 months following laser exposure using full-field and multifocal electroretinography (ERG and MF-ERG), electrooculography (EOG), and optical coherence tomography (OCT), in addition to a full ophthalmological examination. MF-ERG, OCT, and the ophthalmological examination were repeated 7 months after the first examination. The output of the laser pointer was measured.

Results

Despite severe focal damage to the central retina visible fundoscopically and with OCT, all electrophysiological examinations were quantitatively normal; however, qualitatively the central responses of the MF-ERG appeared slightly reduced. When the MF-ERG was repeated 7 months later, all findings were normal. The laser pointer was found to emit both visible and infrared radiation in dangerous amounts.

Conclusion

Loss of retinal function following laser pointer injury may not always be detectable using standard electrophysiological tests. Exposure to non-visible radiation should be considered as a possible aggravating factor when assessing cases of alleged laser pointer injury.

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Acknowledgments

JVMH was partially funded by the Clinical Research Priority Programme of the University of Zurich. MM was partially funded by the Swiss Confederation program Nano-Tera.ch, which was scientifically evaluated by the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Ophthalmology, University Hospital Zurich, Frauenklinikstrasse 24, 8091, Zurich, Switzerland

    James V. M. Hanson, Julian Sromicki & Christina Gerth-Kahlert

  2. Institute for Quantum Electronics, ETH Zurich, Auguste-Piccard-Hof 1, 8093, Zurich, Switzerland

    Mario Mangold & Matthias Golling

Authors
  1. James V. M. Hanson
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  2. Julian Sromicki
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  3. Mario Mangold
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  4. Matthias Golling
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  5. Christina Gerth-Kahlert
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to James V. M. Hanson.

Ethics declarations

Statement of human rights

All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the Institutional and/or National Research Committee and with the 1964 Declaration of Helsinki and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

Statement on the welfare of animals

This article does not contain any studies with animals performed by any of the authors.

Informed consent

For this type of study, formal consent is not required.

Conflict of interest

JVMH was partly funded by the Clinical Research Priority Programme of the University of Zürich and has received speaker fees and travel support from Biogen. MM was partially funded by the Swiss Confederation program Nano-Tera.ch, which was scientifically evaluated by the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF); subsequent to the work presented here, he has been employed by II–VI Laser Enterprise GmbH, Zurich. JS, MG, and CG-K report no conflicts of interest.

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Hanson, J.V.M., Sromicki, J., Mangold, M. et al. Maculopathy following exposure to visible and infrared radiation from a laser pointer: a clinical case study. Doc Ophthalmol 132, 147–155 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10633-016-9530-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10633-016-9530-5

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